Once heralded as the future of marketing, email marketing was seen as the medium to replace direct mail marketers. However, with readership rates falling and spam filters getting stronger some have begun to question if its day of marketing has passed and whether it is any more effective than direct mail campaigns. With the odds being stacked against it, it remains to be decided if it is a worthy investment.

One of the draws of E-marketing was its cheap cost, relative to paper-based campaigns. It originally offered a better delivery rate, providing that email addresses were correct, there was no reason why messages were not delivered. As the number of companies using email marketing increased, its effectiveness declined. Swamped by unsolicited messages, irritated by irrelevant content and wary of emails containing viruses, the percentage of emails being opened has reduced to an all time low. Furthermore, spam filters and fire walls are becoming ever stricter, allowing fewer and fewer emails through. In percentage terms, it offers only minimal increases over paper-based campaigns.

However, despite falling readership it is still possible to increase sales and awareness using Email Marketing. Providing that you make every effort to avoid spam filters, tailor your emails to meet your audience's exact specification and provide relevant content, and then your email will be read. In addition, E-marketing is still cost effective than mail based campaigns and can be produced at a faster rate; with many companies being able to send out literature every single day.

Another advantage is its ability to send bespoke, real time and customisable information to audience that are genuinely interested. That in its self is the key to success, the content that you include must be relevant and interesting, people are much too street wise to open emails for the sake of it.

There can be little doubt that Email Marketing has not lived up to its expected potential, however it can still be hugely powerful. It is still something that can be hugely beneficial to businesses of all sizes, but it needs to be remembered that on its own it will not massively increase sales. As more businesses begin to utilise it, its uniqueness will further be eroded and you may wish to invest your money elsewhere. Email has great potential, but unless it is applied successfully it will be no more effective than mail based campaigns, something that should be remembered when considering this method of marketing as the future.